


the night's just the night

by valonqarth



Category: Star Wars - All Media Types, The Mandalorian (TV)
Genre: Asexual Din Djarin, Asexuality Spectrum, Boundaries, Developing Relationship, Din Djarin Needs a Hug, Internalized Acephobia (a bit), M/M, No beta we die like younglings, POV all over the place, Sleepy Cuddles, Slow Build, Touch-Starved Din Djarin, lots of talking, make the ace din fic you want to see in the world, post chapter 9
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-02-11
Updated: 2021-02-12
Packaged: 2021-03-17 15:09:01
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 5,790
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29352492
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/valonqarth/pseuds/valonqarth
Summary: "I do like men... you. It's just not really about the sex for me. It's not really relevant. It's," he struggled for the right word, "complicated."It was strange to hear him so hesitant, so nervous. This was the same man that had confidently demanded that he take the armour off and argued with him about the Tuskens. He wanted everything to be clear, to ease away the uncertainty in his voice."Listen, Mando. Complicated is fine, no sex is fine. It can be simple. I just want to make you feel good and safe here. The kid’s asleep in bed, safe. You're here with me, safe."-Din doesn't want to leave straight away after killing the krayt dragon. Cobb keeps looking at him like he's never wanted anything else. The attention is by no means unwelcome, it's just that Din is way too tired for an asexual panic.
Relationships: Din Djarin/Cobb Vanth
Comments: 15
Kudos: 88





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> the lil panic could've been resolved easily with words but din is ~emotionally stunted~  
> I don't know shit about Star Wars bro
> 
> claiming Din Djarin for the asexuals thnx

“Come home with me, Mando,” Vanth had said with a smile. “Mos Pelgo at least owes you some hospitality.”

Vanth had handed over the armour without complaint, their agreement had been fulfilled with a handshake. Din looked at him. One night couldn’t hurt, he guessed. The thought of the days drive back to Mos Eisley was growing less appealing as the night's festivities in Mos Pelgo had got underway. The kid was having a good time, running around in the sand chasing excitedly after bugs and lizards, weaving between people’s legs intently. He hesitated, not entirely sure what such hospitality would entail. He was reluctant to leave the company of the marshal and had quite contentedly spent the evening alongside him accepting thanks and turning down drinks.

“Just tonight, Vanth,” he said evenly. “My friend is looking after my ship in Mos Eisley.”

“Just tonight,” Cobb nodded with a smile. “It’ll be nice to have you stay. And please, call me Cobb.”

Din liked seeing the marshal smile, it was an easy smile that lit up his face. It brought attention to the mark beside his eye that Din was certainly not thinking about running his thumb over. He strode over a few paces to where the kid had stopped to inspect something, gazing curiously into the sand where some creature had burrowed away from him, and scooped the child up into his arms. 

“ _ Ad’ika _ , we’re going to stay with Cobb tonight, but then we’re going right back to Peli,” he said, bringing him back to where Cobb stood waiting. The child looked between the two and gurgled in approval.

Din walked alongside Cobb through the darkening main street of Mos Pelgo. They walked in matching strides, with Din half a step behind Cobb letting him lead the way. The angle made it easier to look at both Cobb and where they were going with the impaired peripheral vision of his helmet.

They made it to Cobb's small house, not too far away from the centre of town, and Cobb led them inside. It was small and a little cluttered but had a homey and well-loved feel. The living space looked cosy to Din. There was an extra blaster half-dismantled on the table for cleaning, as though Vanth had been interrupted while caring for it - no doubt disturbed by reports of an armed man approaching the town on a speeder. There were books and mechanical parts on the shelves that Din couldn’t really identify. He noticed a framed photograph of Vanth, a little younger but still wearing his beskar, smiling proudly alongside a tall twi’lek woman, both with blasters at their hips. 

Din took off his weapons and put them down by the front door, where he could easily get to them if necessary. The armour was, at this point, a bit of a lost cause, covered in dragon gunk and sand. He knew he should clean it and maintain it as soon as he could, but he was exhausted and too tired to care. His attention was much more focused on the man pottering around the small kitchen with the kid held on his hip as he tried to assemble some food with his free arm. Cobb was keeping the kid occupied, chatting away while the kid responded with babbles and noises that Cobb pretended to understand.

"What do you want to eat then, kid? Your daddy must not be feeding you enough," Cobb said looking behind him and giving Din a smile. Din felt a pang in his heart seeing the two together.

"Hey," Din said, joining them in the kitchen. "I feed him, the kid is just a black hole for food."

"Well, I guess we should give in to you, kiddo, if you're gonna grow up big and strong like your dad," Cobb said, passing up a chunk of haroun bread to the child, who cooed with delight and devoured it. The Child made grabby hands for more and Cobb handed over the rest of it with a chuckle.

Cobb gestured towards a door. "Fresher's through there if you want to take a shower. It's just a sonic, not much water around here. There's some clean clothes in the closet."

"That will be fine," said Din. "Thank you."

Normally, Din would prefer to wait until he was back at his ship to have a shower. The bile had seeped in through the fabric of his flight suit a bit, and the acid drying on his skin was probably not medically advisable for long-term wear. Idly, as he undressed, he wondered how long he had before he needed to leave Mos Pelgo. Everyone seemed kind enough and there wasn’t any immediate danger in a town that wasn’t even on a map. Peli would be waiting for him, but he didn’t think she would be mad. 

Din emerged from the fresher in Cobb's ill-fitting but crucially not dragon-covered clothes. Cobb was standing in his living room, turning and swaying slightly, with the baby curled up against his red shirt, breathing softly. He looked down at the kid with caution, not quite knowing if his attempt to get him to sleep had been successful and not wanting to make a sudden movement that would undo his efforts. 

With the armour removed and without layers of padding around his body, Din’s frame looked slightly smaller than before. The bulk of the layers of his flight suit, cloak and beskar were gone making his still armoured head seem slightly disproportionate to the image Cobb was used to. Cobb tried not to stare, but it was difficult. The man looked good and even better in Cobb’s lightweight shirt. Din felt the heat in his cheeks rise as he met the man's gaze, seeing him admiring him so blatantly.

Din crossed the room and moved to gently take the dozing bundle from Cobb’s arms. While he had been in the fresher, Cobb had retrieved a basket from somewhere and filled it with blankets and an old poncho to create a nest for the little guy.

“Thank you. You got much experience with kids?” Din asked. He slowly lowered the child into the basket, gently prising a claw off where it had sleepily curled into the fabric of his shirt. 

“Not really had much chance. I had to take care of a baby Hutt once, for a little while,” Cobb said, scratching his beard. Din looked over his shoulder at him and while Cobb couldn’t read his expression he assumed it was one of shock. “It’s a long story. Wasn’t nearly so well behaved as your little one.”

“I think we just managed to tire him out with all the excitement. Not every day he gets to see me fight a krayt dragon.” 

The kid was out cold by now, having burrowed down in the blankets snoring gently. 

Cobb chuckled. “I should hope not, though I imagine travelling with you isn’t all peace and tranquillity.”

“I do my best to take care of him,” Din said. He was glad that he decided to stay in Mos Pelgo, even if to let the kid rest for a little while in comfort.

“Well, perhaps someone ought to be taking care of you,” said Cobb.

Cobb reached out a hand to gently touch the side of Din’s helmet, as close as he could get to a caress of his cheek. Din leaned into the touch, as much as he could, tilting his head to press against the hand. It wasn’t a real touch, but he loved the feeling of being touched with affection and not anger or violence.

Cobb moved closer to Din, pushing him gently against the doorframe with his body. Din sighed and allowed Cobb to press close to him. Cobb's hands were on Din's hips

He enjoyed the feeling of the marshal's hands on his skin and the rub of his nose against his collarbone. The closeness. He hadn't been touched in so long, it made every touch feel intense but soothing. Din couldn’t stop himself from running his own hands up Cobb’s arms and wrap his arms around Cobb’s shoulders. He hummed contentedly at the contact.

Gently, Cobb's hand reached down to palm the front of Din's borrowed pants. Din breathed out slowly and let his head fall back to rest against the wall behind him.

"Marshal, I can't have sex with you."

"Dank, this creed won't let you have anything fun, huh?" He pulled his hand away from Din, his breath still warm on his throat beneath the helmet. "It's okay. You can keep the helmet on if that's the problem."

"No, I mean - it's, - I don't want to."

"Oh! right, well," Cobb said, a look of horror crossed his face. Cobb had thought the attraction between them was mutual but now he was mortified. "I'm sorry, I clearly misunderstood."

He dropped his hands from where they had rested on Din's hips and took a step back. Out of the warmth of his embrace, but still close enough to reach out and touch him. Cobb hoped he wasn't about to get a different Keldabe kiss from the one he was after, it was difficult to tell from beneath the helmet. The Mandalorian had just saved his town, and here he was trying to jump him when he - didn't want him? didn't swing that way? just wanted a place to stay?

Din saw the disappointed look on Cobb's face before he retrained his expression to polite neutrality.  _ Fucks sake, _ he thought,  _ why is this so difficult? _

"No," he sighed. "I'm sorry. I do like you, I wouldn't have come if I didn't."

The marshal's intent had been clear when he invited him home, Din thought. He had seen it in the way Cobb had looked at him across the fire and felt it in the light touches on beskar as they had chatted with the locals. Din had been used to seeing people attracted to him. He never really expected people to - they couldn't even see him. Something about the armour made him strange enough that people wanted to try him. Maybe to thank him for helping them out, or just being able to say they had successfully wooed a Mandalorian. Those people were easy to turn down, a firm no and they tend to get the hint. But this time was different, he doesn't want Cobb to leave him alone so he can go back to his ship and tend to his armour in peace. He gently took Cobb's wrist and turned his palm up.

He thought of how best to phrase it. He didn't want to fuck him, he knew that for sure at this moment, but he found that he still cared about Cobb and wanted him to enjoy his company, this evening - him. He was too exhausted to pretend he didn't like Cobb, but he was far too tired to feign desire. He wanted, that much was true, but what he wanted and what Cobb wanted were clearly different things. Din just needed to use his words and be clear - but wasn’t that half the battle?

"I do like men...  _ you _ . It's just not really about the sex for me. It's not really relevant. It's," he struggled for the right word, "complicated."

It was strange to hear him so hesitant, so nervous. This was the same man that had confidently demanded that he take the armour off and argued with him about the Tuskens. He wanted everything to be clear, to ease away the uncertainty in his voice.

"Listen, Mando. Complicated is fine, no sex is fine. It can be simple. I just want to make you feel good and  _ safe _ here. The kid’s asleep in bed,  _ safe _ . You're here with me,  _ safe _ ."

Din sighed. Cobb shifted his wrist out of Din's loose grip and pressed his palm into Din's, lacing their fingers together. "Now, I think you know that I wanted you from the moment you burst out of that krayt dragon. My concern isn't what  _ I _ want. You don't get very far in life thinking like that. Why don't we sit down and you can tell me all about it, hmm?"

Din allowed Cobb to lead him by their entwined fingers to the small couch in the living room. Cobb put himself on the opposite end of the couch, not wanting to crowd Din but keeping their hands between them.

"It doesn't normally come up," Din said, scratching the back of his neck with his free hand. “I’m not used to all this.” He raised their joined hands briefly to emphasise his point.

“That’s okay, I’ve got all night, Mando.”

"It’s like… podracing." He hesitated before continuing slowly. “You know, it’s meant to be a big fun and exciting sport for most people. But some people, they just don’t get why it’s so interesting, or why people are so into it. It’s like that, but with sex. I don’t hate it, I’m just not interested.”

“Okay, I getcha,” Cobb chuckled. He wondered if Mando had recognised the engine he had ridden across the desert, and tried to put it into terms a Tatooine boy like him would understand. He tried to keep up the metaphor, but it was clunky. “I like to go fast, but there’s no need to rush.”

Din nodded, relieved. It was a really bad analogy, he knew, but it was really kriffing warm under his helmet and he really didn’t want Cobb to get the wrong impression again. 

"So, do you ever touch yourself? Don't it get awful lonely out there in the stars?"

It felt like such an intimate question from someone he had only met a couple of days before but it was an odd day already. He felt Cobb's gaze looking into his visor, aiming to meet his. Sometimes people asked things, trying to trip him up, disprove him. The look on Cobb's face told him that this wasn't some sort of trap, or means to convince him. It was a look of curiosity and the want to understand him.

"The, uh mechanics, still work," he started. "Sometimes I do. Like scratching an itch, I guess."

Cobb considered for a moment, then nodded. He dragged a hand through his hair. He had to admit that he hadn’t met anyone like Mando before, but the galaxy was vast and brought a wealth of perspectives. 

"That sounds fair enough, Mando. So I won't touch you where you don't want me to, but earlier would suggest some touching is good." He said, running his thumb over Din's bare knuckles. He raised a questioning eyebrow.

"I liked it. When you touched me before. You can do that." Din nodded. "I'd rather not have anything below the belt.”

"Okay, nothin' too heavy." Cobb smiled and squeezed Din's hand. "Can I kiss you?"

"The helmet stays on," Din said firmly. "You can't see my face."

"I guessed as much, Mando. How about here?" he said, tracing a finger along the silver metal of his cheek. Din nodded. Cobb leant forward and placed a light kiss on the side of his helmet. Din breathed in sharply. He couldn’t actually feel it, but the closeness made his heart speed up.

"Okay," said Cobb, emboldened by the success but not wishing to push his luck. He traced a finger to where Din's neck met his shoulder, exposed between the neckline of Din's borrowed shirt and the bottom of the helmet. "Here?"

Din nodded again. Cobb dropped his head from Din's helmet and kissed him. Din still wasn't used to the sensation of being touched, especially so softly. His heart pounded.

"Any other boundaries I should know about, or should we just go to bed?" said Cobb, leaning back on the couch. Cobb read the angle of Din's helmet. "Relax, partner, you've had a long day I figured you might want to relax.”

Cobb didn't want to coddle Din, he was a grown man. He was happy at this point to let Din control the pace for now. Skipping the sex and going straight for the cuddling was hardly a bad deal - it wasn't often around here you found someone not heading straight for the door when the fun was over. Nights on Tatooine were cold and he was always glad to have company, especially if that company was strong and handsome. If he had more time, he would be delighted to get to know him more.

"Uh, I think we're okay for now. I'd like it if you held me."

Cobb grinned. He felt a lot better now he was being clearer. He stood up and pulled Din gently to his feet, leading him by the hand through the living room and towards his bedroom. “The baby okay staying here?”

“If we wake him now he won’t settle again. He’ll be fine there.”

“Sure thing. Maybe next time I can find him a proper crib to sleep in.”

The bedroom was more sparsely decorated than the living areas of the house. It was simple, with a simple unmade bed, big enough for two, layered with blankets. A chest of drawers sat in the corner, with a rifle resting on top of it.

“I do have another room, you know,” Cobb began. He didn’t want Mando thinking he would’ve brought him here presuming they would end up in Cobb’s bed. Hoped so, certainly.

“I want to be with you.”

“If you wanna sleep without the helmet, I promise I won’t peek. If it’s more comfortable.”

“I’m used to sleeping in the helmet. I’m not quite... there yet with taking it off around others.”

He trusted Cobb, but the thought of taking his helmet off even if the other man couldn’t see him was too much for today. Din considered what it would be like to kiss him, but he was getting ahead of himself. The helmet wasn’t much of an encumbrance to sleeping. 

“Come lie down, Mando.” Cobb sat down on the edge of the bed and gestured to the space beside him. Din nodded shortly. He climbed onto the bed and Cobb laid back with his head against the pillows. They settled close to each other, face to face. In the dim light, Cobb was a wonder to look at with his wide smile and long graceful frame.

“You’re so beautiful,” Din said quietly. Cobb looked intently into the darkness of the visor. He reached out with his hand and placed it against Cobb’s cheek, feeling the light rub of his beard on his palm. He leaned into the touch, closing his eyes.

“You’re pretty pretty yourself. I’m good at this sort of thing, I can definitely tell.”

Din felt a small stab of guilt. By being himself he was depriving this man of things it was only natural for him to want from Din: his body, his face, even a kiss. He tried not to think about it, but his traitorous brain wouldn’t quite let him get away with it.

“I should’ve told you I’m asexual to start with.”

His brow furrowed slightly at Din’s comment. 

“You didn’t do anything wrong. I misinterpreted, is all. You just stop me if I’m crossing a line, sweetheart.” 

Din smiled at his sweetness, but remembered that he couldn’t see him so verbally agreed. The marshal moved closer, so he was no longer at arms length and pressed his forehead against Din’s helmet and draped his arm over his waist. Cobb knew that if he did anything to offend, Din could easily shove him off. He was stronger than Cobb and Cobb knew it. Din tentatively ran a hand through his grey-silver hair, marvelling at the feel of it in his hands.

“This is nice.”

“Yeah.”

After a few moments, Din lifted the arm that was over him and turned, Cobb’s chest to his back. He settled with Cobb’s arm across his chest, and pushed back against him, signalling Cobb to tighten his arm and hold him close. Cobb was happy to comply.

The helmet was a little awkward, so close to Cobb’s face, but it was worth it for the feeling of their bodies pressed together in the darkness. The weight was a comfort, the way that beskar was, distributed across his body evenly so no point was too heavy. For someone who hadn’t been touched in so long, every nerve of his body was aware of where it met Cobb’s. It was almost too much, but it was too good to push him away. Cobb’s steady and even breaths grounded him, and the firm arm around his chest made him feel secure. Cobb hummed happily, and gently rubbed circles on Din’s chest. They laid in the dark, knees tucked into the back of his own, their bodies curved together.

Cobb shifted slightly and planted soft kisses up Din’s neck, starting from his exposed collarbone. When he reached the pulse point where his neck met his jaw, he let the kiss become more open and gently licked at him. Din gasped, and Cobb decided it was the hottest sound he had heard him make. He filed the noise and the quickening of Din’s chest away for later. It might only be one night that Cobb would have him in his bed, but to have his warm body pressed against him so relaxed and content, it was certainly worth it.

“Good,” Din breathed.

“Good,” Cobb replied, dropping to press a chaste kiss against the nape of his neck.

The excitement of touch and affection had buzzed Cobb enough to keep him awake, but in the quiet calm of their embrace, he felt sleep tugging at him. He really was fucking exhausted and he could only imagine Din was worse for wear than he was. 

Soon enough, they both succumbed to sleep, snoring quietly.

  
  



	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Leaving Mos Pelgo is difficult. Nobody brings Din caf in bed on the Razor Crest.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> listen boys, the sooner Din leaves and gets on with his mission the sooner he can come back.
> 
> ft more staring at each other and stuff

Cobb woke up as the first sun had started to rise. The light was just beginning to come through the small window and illuminate the room. The man beside him continued to sleep soundly. It really didn’t look comfortable to be sleeping with a chunk of metal around your face, Cobb thought. Presumably, Mando was used to it, and if it made him feel more comfortable then, why not. 

Waking up with his body still pressed against a beautiful man had definitely caught the interest of his dick. He shifted slightly, twisting his hips away from Mando’s body. While he didn’t think it would be a problem if Mando knew he was half-hard behind him, he didn’t yet know him well enough to risk making the man uncomfortable. There was no shame in it, he knew, but it wasn’t Mando’s problem or what he signed up for.

He sighed, he was definitely awake now. As inviting as the warm bed was, he was sure he could hear shuffling from the living room and didn’t want Mando to wake up to the kid getting into the weapons or some other mischief. It would spoil the mood a little. Still a little groggy with sleep, he crept around the bed and into the living room, doing his best not to wake the sleeping Mandalorian, to find the kid sat on the floor, chewing on one of Cobb’s scarves.

“G’mornin’,” he said. The kid looked up at him, wide-eyed like he knew he was doing something he shouldn't, but the lack of reproach in Cobb must’ve reassured him enough to continue. Satisfied that the child wasn’t at risk of burning down his house unattended, Cobb set about making breakfast. The kid shuffled across the living room into the kitchen area, dragging the scarf with him, and looked up at Cobb from his ankle. He leant down, scooped up the child and put him on the countertop to give him a good enough view of what he was doing to keep him entertained.

Cobb had to admit, it was nice to have the kid as company while he worked and saved him talking to himself. He would miss both of them when they would inevitably leave him.

\---

Din could safely say he hadn’t slept so well in a long time. Especially not since going on the run with a stolen baby. 

He stirred, and felt the bed next to him for Cobb, missing his weight against him. The bed was empty with just the helmeted Mandalorian lying on his front with his arms curled around the pillow. His brain hadn’t quite caught up with him, but it felt like late morning from the way the light streamed through the small window of the bedroom. How long had he been asleep? 

“Anyone ever tell you you snore?” Cobb said behind him from the open doorway of the bedroom.

“Mmmph?”

“It’s cute. Helmet picks it up, makes it sound all funny.”

“You… sound all funny.”

“Smooth. Want some caf, partner?”

“Mmm.” Din continued to burrow his covered face into the pillow. 

“And some for the kid too, I think he likes it.”

Din made a startled noise. The baby cooed expectantly.

“Don’t-” he began, sitting up quickly.

“Relax, sleepy, I just wanted to see if that would wake you up.”

He blinked, blurred eyes coming into focus. Cobb was leant against the doorframe, with a cup of steaming caf in one hand and the kid tucked into the crook of his other arm. Din thought that was definitely a pleasant sight to wake up to. The Marshal was all ready for the day, dressed in fresh clothes and his red scarf secured in place. His hair was still dishevelled from sleep, natural and unstyled. It still looked good, and Din thought about running his hand through it again before he needed to put his gloves back on. 

The child had seen that his dad was awake now, and squirmed in Cobb’s arm to get free. Cobb curled out his arm and let the child onto the bed, before handing Din his caf. The smell of the caf wasn’t as strong through the helmet, but it was enough to begin to wake Din up a bit more. Din rubbed his little wrinkled head in greeting and the kid climbed into his lap. 

“I told the kid you would want to have breakfast in private, but he was quite insistent about seeing you straight away. I made you an omelette.” Cobb turned away to head back to the kitchen. “The kid ate two.”

Cobb returned with a plate of food for him.

“This is great. Thank you, Cobb.”

He smiled. He didn’t remember the last time someone had cooked him something in their home. Sorgan? That felt like forever ago.

“Don’t say that until you try it. It’s just about the only thing I can cook with some success. I fear my plans of wooing you into staying a bit longer with my cooking skills aren’t quite gonna work, partner.”

“I’m sure it will be delicious. We do have to leave today, though. We have a mission.” He certainly didn’t like it, but not liking it didn’t make it any less true. Every day he would spend lounging in bed with a handsome man on Tatooine is one day closer a potential threat would be to catching up. 

“Can’t blame a guy for trying,” Cobb shrugged with a small smile. “Come on, kid. We better let your daddy eat his breakfast in peace.”

The child grumbled a little but followed Cobb out of the room anyway, climbing down off the bed with Din’s help and running all the way just because.

Din removed the helmet when the door closed behind the kid. He sipped at the caf, savouring the taste. Good coffee was harder to come by this far out. The ache of his body from days of riding, camping and fighting had subsided. 

It felt a little lonely, eating in Cobb’s bedroom alone while him and the kid were outside. He heard Cobb laugh, probably at the kid doing something cute.

Din scoffed the omelette quickly, wanting to rejoin the pair of them in the living room. It was good and undoubtedly better than the ration packs he was used to. A simple omelette and coffee, in better circumstances, would definitely have persuaded him to stay. The kid was his priority, and finding Mandalorians to lead him to the Jedi had to come first. _This is the way._

He stood up with a sigh and set about putting his armour back on. He hadn’t gotten around to cleaning it last night, but the dragon bile was dried onto the surface for now and he would deal with it when he got back to the ship.

The child was shrieking happily when Din came to join them. Cobb was holding him by his underarms, lifting him above his head with a _whoosh_. He swooped him down and around in different directions. When he saw Din enter the room, he rushed toward him holding the baby outstretched and dramatically lowered him into Mando’s waiting arms with a chuckle.

Immediately, the kid tapped on the cuirass in delight and babbled excitedly. Din chuckled.

“I don’t speak… whatever that is, but I think he wants his own jetpack,” Cobb said, very seriously.

“Don’t give him ideas,” Din retorted. “Jet packs require skill and training.”

“Well, I never had a problem with mine until _someone_ broke it.”

Din shook his head. 

“What are _you_ gonna do now the dragon is gone?” said Din.

“I figured I’d head out later, see if anyone needs me. Usually, I’d have someone or other at my door by now asking me to help out. This morning, I expect they’re too hungover to cause any trouble, or too polite to disturb when I have company to entertain,” Cobb explained with a wink.

"How thoughtful of them."

The two of them got ready for the day. Cobb reassembled his blaster after caring for the pieces. Din did his best to give the kid a quick bath with a cloth and the sink. All the while, Cobb told the Mandalorian about the townspeople of Mos Pelgo and what they had been doing before Mando rode into town. Din listened with interest but didn't have much to add. Jo wanted to be a mechanic, Issa-Or had decided to use her freedom to travel, the school was looking to get some new equipment. After the kid was relatively clean, he sat beside Cobb and pretended to check his own weapons. They chatted as they went about their definitely essential tasks for getting ready for the long journey and preparing for a day of armourless marshalling.

\-- -

It was the afternoon by the time they got to Din’s bike, left on the outskirts of the town. The armour and the dragon meat were loaded up onto the speeder. Din tucked Grogu into the satchel side-car and ran a finger along one of his big ears in apology for packing him away. 

“I guess it’s goodbye until we meet again, Mando.” Marshal Vanth leant against his own speeder, parked alongside Din’s.

“It’s Din.” Din couldn't give Cobb much to remember him by, but a name was at least a start.

“Now he tells me,” Cobb laughed.

“You didn’t ask!”

“You look like a Din.”

“You don’t even know what I look like.”

“Mysteriously handsome, definitely human, looks good in silver, thighs that could kill a man. I’ve seen enough.” He paused before taking Din’s hand in his. 

“Listen, I know you have a lot of shit to do out there,” Cobb said, gesturing up at the sky. “But perhaps you could come back sometime. You’ll know where I am if you need anything. Or just want anything. Some backup, a place to stay, a babysitter or just… me.” 

“I would like to come back to you. I don’t wanna give you my word not knowing I can keep it, but I would really like to.” Din raised a gloved hand to Cobb’s cheek, to hold it as he had done before. Cobb turned his face and kissed the palm of the glove. 

Cobb understood that Din had to go. With the threat of the krayt dragon gone, Cobb expected he would have plenty to do with keeping peace with the Tuskens. It would be a welcome distraction from the small ache of sadness he would feel at seeing Mando go. He hadn’t expected to care this much about the Mandalorian, though. He knew he had liked him enough to bring him home, definitely, but he didn’t expect the happiness that came from simply being beside him. 

“Well, Din, you and your boy are always welcome in Mos Pelgo.”

“Thank you, Cobb. For everything.” 

Din knew that was it, and it was time for them to go. It felt weird to leave like this. It was difficult to show affection within the limits of his desire and his creed.

“Close your eyes,” Din said. Cobb complied immediately. 

Gently, Din took his hand. He looked around them to see if anyone could see, but they were far enough towards the edge of town that there was no one. With one hand, he raised Cobb’s hand toward him, with the other he tipped the helmet up just enough to expose his mouth. He brushed his lips against the soft underside of Cobb’s wrist. It felt safer than just kissing him properly, far enough away from his face. Cobb drew in a breath and his cheeks reddened slightly. He didn’t think a kiss on the wrist would shock him, but from Din - he knew that it took some courage on his part. 

The simultaneous thrill and horror of exposing just a small portion of his face to kiss the man was well worth it to Din. It wasn’t any riskier than getting yourself eaten by a krayt dragon, he reasoned. Din just hoped he wouldn’t think him weird for it. Though, he doubted he was any weirder than your average Mandalorian with an old young green alien, sleeping in a helmet. His helmet was back down over his face as soon as he pulled away from Cobb.

“You can open them now.”

Cobb opened his eyes and grinned at him. He moved forward to embrace the man, a little awkwardly against the dirty armour. Din’s arms moved to snake around Cobb’s waist. 

“You really should go before I try and make you stay.” Cobb said, but didn’t move.

Din sighed and pulled away. He gave the marshal one last nod, checked the baby and the armour was secure and sped off into the Dune Sea. Cobb watched him go for a little bit, until the sound of someone calling him from down the street snatched his attention.

**Author's Note:**

> this is my first dincobb + first fic I've written in 5 years or so. sorry if it's anticlimactic, Din takes it slow and who are we to question that.
> 
> character wise, the helmet gotta stay on. writing wise, it's really fucking annoying. I gotta write more just so I can get this man some kisses. 
> 
> din is asexual spectrum + sex indifferent/perhaps favourable but I don't really know where abouts on the spectrum. mainly basing things off my own experience as a sex indifferent ace with an allo partner. 
> 
> dont @ me about podracing. life is a highway.
> 
> there will probably be more of this after the first 2 chapters but it'll be a bit more spicy so maybe a separate work :) 
> 
> come say hi on tumblr? im demisexuallupin
> 
> good vibes only, if you like it please comment n stuff


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